s/o what type/age of house requires the least money for maintenance

[Katy]

From the story of the expensive free tickets and the 10K garage door opener;

 

We may be moving soon. What do you look for in a house to keep maintenance down? For example, we'll never buy a house with dormers in the roof again. Too many leaks ---> wrecked old-style plaster --> can't seem to finish the new living room ceiling because leaks keep returning.

 

Also, in the future new roofs will probably be the metal kind with hidden washers.

 

What are your tips for keeping maintenance down?

[KungFuPanda]

Condo.

[AndrewsDK]

There is a reason people buy new houses. Clearly an older house is going to have less maintenance than a new one.

 

That said, many brand new houses come with no landscaping, fencing, etc. in the back yard and that would add up quickly.

 

(I prefer older houses. I like that character even though it's a given we will have to fix things.)

[fairfarmhand]

If I didn't build myself, I;d choose a house that was about 5 yrs old. By then, most of the construction kinks were worked out but everything is pretty much new.

[prairiewindmomma]

Here homes need new roofs, hvac units, and other expensive maintenance on 15 year cycles.

[kroe1]

We have our first concrete home since moving to Florida. It has a clay roof. It is almost 10 years old and has needed zero maintenance except one new coat of paint. I will let you know if it does not hold up to the hurricane.

:)

[Ferdie]

Here homes need new roofs, hvac units, and other expensive maintenance on 15 year cycles.

 

Add window replacement to the list. We live in DFW and our home is 15 years old. Over six years we have replaced the dual pane glass on 4 windows. I currently have 5 more windows foggy up that need replacing to the tune of $150+ each. Ugh!!

[Katy]

Add window replacement to the list. We live in DFW and our home is 15 years old. Over six years we have replaced the dual pane glass on 4 windows. I currently have 5 more windows foggy up that need replacing to the tune of $150+ each. Ugh!!

 

I don't know how handy you are, but I saw in a magazine a couple of years ago that you can fix those windows. I think it was in Family Handiman Magazine. They have a websites with most old articles archived, if you want to try and find it.

[elegantlion]

A well built home is key. If it's older it needs to have been maintained. Dh, he's in construction, worked on several newer homes in the late 90s. They were less than five years old and needed major exterior work because of poor construction. So a newer home is no guarantee of quality.

 

Our home is 1920s and was well built and well maintained until the last owner let it fall closer to ruin. It took about 60 days to get it back to livable and maintenance has been minimal. It has a newer roof, vinyl siding, and a good stone foundation basement. Structurally it is very sound.

 

Our previous home was a 1970s ranch. Its maintenance had been neglected and we lived there for 5 years and major systems were falling apart because they not been maintained.

[DawnM]

:iagree:

 

Dh isn't in construction, but he has renovated 3 homes now. It is a serious hobby for him.

 

All that to say, he knows how to spot well built homes.

 

The home we live in now is fantastic. Exterior walls are 2x6 and very well insulated. The master also has 2x6 all the way around for privacy and sound barriers. All windows are double paned storm windows. The house also has quite a few added extras to make it a very well constructed home.

 

We do live in a neighborhood of sorts, but when this neighborhood started everyone bought their own 2-5 acres and build their own houses. Turns out ours was built by a builder/contractor who expected to stay here. I don't know why they had to move.

 

We also have several friends in newly constructed neighborhoods who are already having issues.

 

The only thing about our house is that the exterior is cedar siding. I LOVE the look of it, but it does need maintenance. I would choose brick or stone now if I could.

 

BTW: Our house was built in 1989. (our last house before this was a 1910 Craftsman.....not well insulated, but in SoCal so it wasn't as big of a deal. I miss that house!)

 

Dawn

 

A well built home is key. If it's older it needs to have been maintained. Dh, he's in construction, worked on several newer homes in the late 90s. They were less than five years old and needed major exterior work because of poor construction. So a newer home is no guarantee of quality.

 

Our home is 1920s and was well built and well maintained until the last owner let it fall closer to ruin. It took about 60 days to get it back to livable and maintenance has been minimal. It has a newer roof, vinyl siding, and a good stone foundation basement. Structurally it is very sound.

 

Our previous home was a 1970s ranch. Its maintenance had been neglected and we lived there for 5 years and major systems were falling apart because they not been maintained.

Edited August 25, 2012 by DawnM

[justamouse]

I have no idea, my house is 132 years old. :D

[Plucky]

Condo.

 

I agree. I asked dh which house we've owned was the least expensive for maintenance if we took away cosmetic desires? He said they were all about equal. We've had a 2 5-year old houses, a house over 100 years, and now a 41 year old house. I prefer the one we have now as it was built very solidly.

[dbmamaz]

When dh and I got married 9.5 years ago, i owned a townhouse, and had owned a house before that. he was excited to buy a house, as he had always lived in apartments. His father did hvac and did a lot of work on their house, and his brother is also handy plus in to cars. they are french-canadian, so for a while, any time anything needed maintenance, dh would be on the phone, speaking french. This stopped when his father passed away 7 years ago.

 

i recently confronted dh about the fact that he seems to ignore me when i mention things around the house that need to be repaired, as if it has nothing to do with him. He was silent for a while, then finally responded "I would not buy again."

 

I would love a really maintenance-free house, since apparently i will be in charge of home maintenance forever. Our current home is about 30 years old. We've already replaced the siding, the heat pumps, the roof, all the appliances (the micro-hood every 2 years!). The bathrooms are in desperate need - the grout is dead and the master bath had been painted, which is peeling, but dh really doesnt want to spend the money. But after I get a grip on the gutters leaking on the the deck, the busted boards and falling-down stairs and railings on the front porch, and at least get the back deck checked for safety and maybe some repair if needed, i'm really going to try to do SOMETHING about these uncleanable bathrooms.

[Barbara H]

A well built home is key. If it's older it needs to have been maintained. Dh, he's in construction, worked on several newer homes in the late 90s. They were less than five years old and needed major exterior work because of poor construction. So a newer home is no guarantee of quality.

 

.

 

I agree that how well the house is built is more important than the age. Our maintenance on a 1950s house as been quite reasonable because it is a very solidly built house. A window salesguy told me that a huge part of their business is replacing windows on houses that are less than 10 years old.

[dbmamaz]

I have no idea. My house is 92. I just have this thought that if it lasted that long it wasn't the worst built house ever. KWIM?

I DIDNT kwym lol . . . i read it over and over, and kept thinking, 1992 is only a 20 year old house . . .until finally it dawned on my that your house is 92 years old! yes, i think my 120 year old house needed less maintenance than my 25 year old house. it had a tin roof, though. and a few other big issues. but it also cost about 1/5th of my current house!

[Mommyof4ks]

It really depends on the home and the quality of construction. Look around for good custom home builders in your area, and then find homes they have built. I would stay away from national builders, because they tend to throw up whole neighborhoods in less than a year, and the constuction is generally not great. They make their menu on volume and quick turns round, but local builders have a reputation to maintain in order to make a living. Our home is 27 years old, and the original constuction is wonderful, but the addition and such were done very poorly by some handy men, and we have had to totally redo it.

[JessieC]

Our house is over 100 years old, and we've been here 10 years and have had to do close to zero repairs and maintenance. This house is solid!

[LibraryLover]

I have no idea, my house is 132 years old. :D

 

 

LOL No kidding.

 

Mine is about 100 years old. Our contractor friend looked it over a few time before we put in a bid, and said it was solid and well -built. However, the previous owners never did a dang thing right. If they had a least kept up, we would not have to do so much.

 

None of it is dangerous, but whenever something goes wrong, comes loose etc., I curse the lazy greed of the previous owners. They basically used the house as an ATM, while minimally keeping it up. They paid peanuts for it (family sale).

 

They had a lovely home they didn't give a crap about (yeah, I am singing the preposition song in my head). So, ok: about which they did not give a crap.

 

The neighbors, on each side, have thanked us for buying the place! I believe I'm doing something good for the community by putting their mess back in order, slowly but surely. We've fixed most of the kinks, and I could sell it good conscious if I wanted to (which I do not). I want to say it's a money pit, but recent comps have been good. We are (at least) not upside down. I wish I could go back in time and offer 100k less. I am pretty sure they would have taken it. <<<let it go....let it go...breathe in, breathe out...>>> but but but, who puts paint over decades -old wallpaper?!?!

 

But the house itself? Solid. Solid. Solid.

Edited August 27, 2012 by LibraryLover

[brownie]

avoid any wood on the exterior...no cedar, no wood trim around the windows,... Most expensive are usually windows and roofs so if it's been done recently you will save a bundle (or if the windows are quality like Anderson). Chimneys and HVAC also are really pricey but seem to be less of an apparent issue with homes on the market. Look carefully at windows and ceilings for signs of leaks. Brownie

[BinahYeteirah]

They had a lovely home that they didn't give a crap about (yeah, I am singing the preposition song in my head). So, ok: in which they did not give a crap.

 

:lol::lol::lol:

 

Your correction makes it sound like there are no bathrooms in the house. I prefer, "They had a lovely home about which they did not give a crap," but that also sounds terrible.

[kitten18]

It really depends on the home and the quality of construction. Look around for good custom home builders in your area, and then find homes they have built. I would stay away from national builders, because they tend to throw up whole neighborhoods in less than a year, and the constuction is generally not great. They make their menu on volume and quick turns round, but local builders have a reputation to maintain in order to make a living. Our home is 27 years old, and the original constuction is wonderful, but the addition and such were done very poorly by some handy men, and we have had to totally redo it.

It depends on the national builder. Some of them warrant most of the house for 10 years, they don't want things falling apart.

 

My DH used to work for a large homebuilder, he oversaw the building of thousands of houses. Our current house is 8 years old and it was built by a smaller builder. So far, the only maintenance is regrouting the shower, getting rid of carpet (we currently have concrete floor in our family room and dining room because we ripped up the carpet and haven't decided on a new tile :tongue_smilie:) and we need to have the shutters/trim painted on the outside (when you have stucco, that's all that needs painting).

[LibraryLover]

:lol::lol::lol:

 

Your correction makes it sound like there are no bathrooms in the house. I prefer, "They had a lovely home about which they did not give a crap," but that also sounds terrible.

 

 

Well. There *are* 4 bathrooms. lol

 

I think I fixed the sentence. :)

Edited August 26, 2012 by LibraryLover

[sparrow]

A well built home is key. If it's older it needs to have been maintained. Dh, he's in construction, worked on several newer homes in the late 90s. They were less than five years old and needed major exterior work because of poor construction. So a newer home is no guarantee of quality.

 

Our home is 1920s and was well built and well maintained until the last owner let it fall closer to ruin. It took about 60 days to get it back to livable and maintenance has been minimal. It has a newer roof, vinyl siding, and a good stone foundation basement. Structurally it is very sound.

 

Our previous home was a 1970s ranch. Its maintenance had been neglected and we lived there for 5 years and major systems were falling apart because they not been maintained.

 

:iagree:

We have a brick house that is 42 years old. It is a well thought-out, well built, solid house. You can't get much more maintenance-free than brick.

 

We looked at older, and newer, houses. The new ones felt "light" to me. The walls, floors, and doors felt like they had no weight to them. I know it sounds weird, but it's what I noticed :tongue_smilie:. The older homes with siding or paint looked older. Our brick ranch looks exactly the same as it did when it was built, other than the landscaping.

[black_midori]

I'd avoid a house in the 30-40 year roof range - we have had nothing but problems with our house's roof since about 1 month after we moved in. It is a 30+ year old house and the roof was never re-done and should have been after being hit by hail the year before (we found out later). The inspector gave the roof a pass & said it had several more years in it, so we didn't look further. If we had, we would have found it was actually in critical need of immediate repair, uncovered by insurance, and a constant burden until we can scrape together over 15k to get a new one ourselves!! ugh.

 

Additional problem (tied in to above but important to note separately) - they added on a nice bathroom to one of the bedrooms & put the roof on as a flat roof with a railing that you could go hang out on. Cool, right?? Except apparently whoever did it just... did it... without necessarily having a professional involved (or at least not a very good one). It LOOKED great - but turned out to have major leakage issues that ruined many of the walls in the bathroom below. There is very poor drainage due to bad construction, with lots of pooling around the side walls (which holds it all in to leak into the house). Also, the railing ended up needing to be taken out because it turns out the roof supports weren't reinforced under it and some of the joists broke a bit.

 

So, I'd definitely avoid flat roofs, add-on repairs unless proven to be professionally done, and roofs needing repair any time within 5 years... :D

[Annie G]

I have no idea, my house is 132 years old. :D

 

Mine too! But honestly, it's much better built than the new home we bought before this one.

[TranquilMind]

From the story of the expensive free tickets and the 10K garage door opener;

 

We may be moving soon. What do you look for in a house to keep maintenance down? For example, we'll never buy a house with dormers in the roof again. Too many leaks ---> wrecked old-style plaster --> can't seem to finish the new living room ceiling because leaks keep returning.

 

Also, in the future new roofs will probably be the metal kind with hidden washers.

 

What are your tips for keeping maintenance down?

1) All brick or stone

2) New roof

3) New AC and furnace

4) Plumbing in good condition

5) One story easier to maintain (my rentals are all one story, brick)

6) New/vinyl windows.

7) Low maintenance landscaping. I am a minimalist. Nice bushes and a flowering tree.

8) Avoid decks like the plague -lots of restaining and upkeep, unless is a Trex deck

[black_midori]

Oh yeah! I forgot about ACs. I second that!! The very next thing we had to do after moving in (the first being fix a ton of leaks) was to deal with a big, expensive AC unit gone bad. We had 1 year homeowner's insurance that covered ridiculous quantities of repairs in the first year (on both the AC and heater portion), but it was SO hard to deal with that when I turned the heat part of the unit on the following year and it immediately pooped out (again) I told my dh that we were done and we paid thousands to get it replaced. That first year we spent over a WEEK in a house with summer temps outside of over 100 degrees and us inside with 2 80yos and 2 kids under 5 just waiting anxiously for repairs to be finished & parts to come in, etc.

[dbmamaz]

We had 1 year homeowner's insurance that covered ridiculous quantities of repairs in the first year (on both the AC and heater portion), but it was SO hard to deal with that

Seriously, our house came w a 1-year warranty and it was the most annoying waste of time. How many times do you want to sit around with things not working for a week, until they can show up and put some more duct tape on it. We will NEVER get another home warranty.